In the Rancher's Arms

Five



“Whoa, Ginger,” he said in a calm, yet firm voice. He didn’t want to startle Tori or the mare, but he had to get them back on solid ground. Although fairly thick, the ice could still have thin areas and soft spots where the sun’s rays had weakened it.

When the mare came to a halt, he hoped his voice sounded calmer than his insides felt. “Tori, the mare is trained to neck-rein. I want you to lay the right rein on her neck. She’ll turn around. Then I want you to slowly walk her back to the bank.”

Had he been on the mare, he would have pulled back on the reins and, using pressure from his knees, backed her off the ice to solid ground. But teaching someone to get a horse to back up wasn’t something he wanted to try doing on the surface of a frozen pond. Nor did he dare walk out on the ice to lead the mare back. Adding his weight could tip the balance and cause the frozen surface to give way.

“We’re going to...make it, G-Ginger,” Tori said to the mare. She didn’t sound at all certain.

“That’s right, honey,” Eli said, doing his best to sound reassuring. “Just a few more feet.”

Tori and the mare were almost to the bank when he heard the sound that sent fear like Eli had never known surging through him. The ice was beginning to give under the mare’s weight and the sickening crack seemed louder to him and more ominous than a clap of thunder.

“Tori, honey, stay focused on me and you’ll be off the ice in no time,” he said, careful to keep his voice even.

The words had no sooner left his mouth than the ice gave way beneath the mare’s back legs, and he watched in horror as Tori slid off the back of the horse into the icy water. Fortunately, they had made it close enough to the bank that the water wasn’t more than a few feet deep and she only sank up to her abdomen, but with the outside temperature below freezing, hypothermia setting in was a danger that he didn’t even want to contemplate.

Pulling Tori out of the water, he immediately put his hat on her head and tied the bandanna in his coat pocket at the back of her head to keep her nose and mouth covered. He knew she probably wondered what he was doing, but he needed to keep as much of her body heat from escaping as he possibly could.

“Wh-what...are...y-you...d-doing?” she asked, her teeth chattering so badly he could barely understand her when he started stripping her of her wet clothes.

“It’s going to be all right, honey,” he tried to reassure her. He had to keep her as warm as possible until he could get her back to the house.

His heart hammered at his rib cage as he threw her wet coat aside, then peeled her sweatshirt and T-shirt from her violently shivering body. Taking his shearling coat off, he wrapped her in it, then turned his attention to catching the frightened mare. Quickly unsaddling the animal, he grabbed the saddle blanket, still warm from being between the saddle and the mare’s broad back, and wrapped it around Tori’s legs.

Lifting her onto the back of the gelding, he swung up into the saddle behind her, then settled her on his thighs and cradled her to him. “Hold on, honey,” he said as he kicked the gelding into a run. “We’ll be back at the house in a few minutes.”

They weren’t more than a quarter of a mile from the house, but the distance had never felt as far or the horse as slow as at that moment. In a matter of minutes they were across the pasture and entering the ranch yard. It felt like hours.

Eli rode the gelding up to the back porch. Dismounting, he carried Tori into the house. “Call Jack to send one of the men out to the pond to get the mare and another one to take care of my gelding,” he ordered as he passed Buck. “Then throw some blankets in the clothes dryer to heat them.”

“What happened?” Buck demanded, following him down the hall to the stairs.

“Tori fell through the ice,” he said, taking the stairs two at a time.

He bypassed her room and carried her straight to the master bedroom. Setting her on her feet, he discarded his hat, the bandanna and the saddle blanket, then pulled off her boots and socks and stripped off the rest of her clothing.

“N-no...s-stop,” she stammered, trying to push his hands away.

“It’s okay, Tori. I have to get the rest of these wet clothes off you,” he said, sounding far calmer than he felt. He was encouraged that she tried to protest. At least she hadn’t slipped into a state of confusion, which would indicate more than just a mild case of hypothermia.

“S-so...c-cold,” she said, shaking all over.

“I know, honey,” he said, getting one of his long-sleeved thermal undershirts from the dresser to pull over her head.

He knew his long underwear would be way too big, but it was the best he could do. He helped her pull the thermal pants on, put a knitted wool beanie on her head and thick socks on her feet, then picked her up to carry her over to the bed.

“You’ll start to get warm in just a few minutes.” Once he had her covered with the comforter, he kissed her cool cheek. “I’ll be right back,” he said, going straight to the medicine chest in his bathroom.

Returning with the digital thermometer, Eli placed it to her ear and waited until he heard it beep. He breathed a sigh of relief when the reading was only a couple of degrees below normal—meaning her core temperature was a degree or two warmer. Taking her pulse, he was glad to find it to be strong and regular.

“Is she gonna be all right?” Buck asked, when he entered the room with his arms full of thick blankets. His expression was as concerned as Eli had ever seen.

“I think so. It’s a mild case of hypothermia,” he said, pulling the comforter back to spread the heated blankets over Tori. Covering her and the blankets with the comforter, he shrugged out of his shirt. “I got her out almost as soon as she hit the water, and she only went in up to the middle of her abdomen.”

“How did it happen?” his father demanded, his scowl indicating that Eli should have been watching her more closely.

“It’s a long story,” Eli said, reaching to unbuckle his belt. “We’ll talk later. For now, make her some of that herbal tea with honey you seem to think is a cure-all. If nothing else it will help warm her from the inside out and give you something to do besides question me.”

Without waiting for Buck to respond, Eli sat on the side of the bed to remove his boots and socks, then shucked his jeans and underwear. Climbing into bed beside her, he pulled Tori into his arms.

“Wh-what are...y-you doing?” she asked, even as she turned on her side and snuggled deeper into his arms.

“I’m sharing my body heat with you.”

“Y-you took off...m-my clothes.” Her tone might have sounded more accusatory if her teeth weren’t still chattering like a set of castanets.

“And I’d do it again if I needed to,” he said, nodding. He checked to make sure the warmed blankets were tucked in around her neck. “Raise your leg, honey.”

“Wh-why?”

“I’m going to put my leg between yours to help warm the blood flowing through your femoral arteries,” he answered.

When she did as he directed, Eli slipped his thigh between hers and immediately wondered what kind of miserable bastard he had become. Her soft body felt absolutely wonderful and his began to stir in response as she moved even closer to him.

How could he possibly get turned on in a situation like the one they were in at the moment? Tori needed the warmth of his body, not his unwarranted lust. Using every ounce of strength he had in him, Eli fought to control his runaway hormones as he held the shivering woman in his arms.

“Thank you...Eli,” she said, a few minutes later. “You saved...my life.”

Her words caused him to feel as guilty as hell. If he had called her on the bluff about knowing how to ride, instead of letting her continue the ruse, the accident wouldn’t have happened. What if the ice had given way when she was farther from the pond bank? What if he hadn’t been able to get her out of the water and back to the house as quickly as he had?

Eli squeezed his eyes shut against all of the what-ifs and took a deep breath. If she had been harmed in any way by his negligence, he would never forgive himself.

“You’re safe now, Tori,” he finally managed to say around the fist-sized lump clogging his throat.

“How did you know what to do?” He was relieved to hear her teeth had stopped chattering and her shivering had eased up a bit.

“Living in this climate and this far from town, medical assistance isn’t immediately available,” he said, kissing her forehead. “Out here, we have to learn early on to be cautious and know what needs to be done in an emergency situation because it could mean the difference between life and death.”

She nodded. “I’m glad you knew what to do.”

He started to tell her that if he hadn’t been so cavalier about her riding abilities the accident wouldn’t have happened to begin with, but a knock on the door stopped him. “Come on in, Buck.”

“How’s she doin’?” his father asked, walking over to set a steaming mug of herbal tea on the bedside table.

“Thanks to Eli’s quick thinking, I’m going to be fine, Buck,” Tori said, her voice sounding a lot stronger. “I’m not nearly as cold now.”

“I’m glad to hear you’re gonna be all right,” Buck said, nodding.

“Could you hand me the thermometer?” Eli asked his father. He wanted to check her temperature again to make sure it was still rising.

“When you make sure Tori’s settled, I’d like to talk to you downstairs,” Buck said, handing Eli the thermometer. Without waiting for his response, Buck walked out of the room.

As he took Tori’s temperature, Eli had a good idea what was on Buck’s mind and knew he was in for a good tongue-lashing for letting something happen that put Tori in jeopardy. It was no more than he deserved and for once, he wasn’t going to resent Buck’s criticism. Tori wasn’t familiar with the harsh climate and had no idea the danger she had been in. But he did and his carelessness could have cost her her life.

An hour later, after she’d drunk the herbal tea and stopped shivering, he took her temperature and thanked the heavens above that it was back up to normal. “How are you feeling now, honey?” he asked as he took her pulse. It was regular and strong.

She pulled the wool cap from her head. “I’m getting hot and I feel like I need a nap.”

“That’s good,” he said as he sat up on the side of the bed and reached for his clothes. “Your temperature is normal and you’re tired because your body used a lot of energy in an attempt to stay warm.”

“You wouldn’t allow me to go to sleep earlier,” she said, yawning. “Is it safe for me to take a nap now?”

He nodded as he stood up to zip his jeans. “Go ahead and get some rest. I’m going downstairs to talk to Buck for a few minutes, but I promise I’ll be here when you wake up.”

He tucked his shirt into the waistband of his jeans and leaned over to kiss her. Her eyes were tightly closed and her cheeks were a rosy-pink. “Is something wrong?”

“No.”

“Then why do you have your eyes scrunched shut and why is your face red?” He had a feeling he knew.

Her cheeks turned an even deeper shade of pink. “I didn’t realize I was lying in the arms of a naked man.”

“You can open your eyes now, Tori. I’m fully dressed.” When she did, he grinned. “Just so you know what to expect, the next time you’re lying in my arms in this bed, I won’t be the only one with my clothes off.”

Her eyes widened and he had the distinct impression that he had just rendered her speechless.

Giving her another quick kiss, Eli forced himself to move before he took off his clothes again and got back in bed. She needed her rest and he needed to get Buck’s lecture out of the way so he could be there when she woke up.

* * *

The next morning, Tori woke to daylight for the first time since arriving on the Rusty Spur. Glancing at the clock on the bedside table, she threw back the covers and got out of bed. It was a little past eight and she should have fed the calves a couple of hours ago.

As she showered and got dressed, she thought about the day before and her brush with disaster. It was her own fault. If she hadn’t tried to fake her way through riding the mare, she wouldn’t have been in the position to fall through the ice in the first place. Thank heavens Eli had known what to do. Otherwise, she could have very easily been in serious trouble. But there hadn’t been any hesitation on his part and because of that, she had suffered nothing more than mild hypothermia and no small amount of embarrassment.

Her cheeks heated. She still had a hard time believing that he had seen her as naked as the day she was born. Of course, when he got out of bed after sharing his body heat to help her get warm, she had been treated to a view of his bare muscular backside.

A tingling flutter in the pit of her stomach reminded her of just how magnificent it was, too. His broad back and shoulders were perfectly defined with muscles made hard from years of ranch work. And his rounded bottom and long muscular legs could have belonged to Michelangelo’s statue of David.

She shook her head as she hurried downstairs. If she had that kind of reaction from a glimpse of his backside, what would happen if...?

“Don’t go there,” she said aloud.

Entering the kitchen, Tori found Buck sitting at the kitchen table drinking a cup of coffee as he looked through a seed catalog. “Mornin’, Tori-gal,” he said, looking up. “What would you like for breakfast?”

“Good morning, Buck.” She shook her head. “I won’t have time to eat. I should have been up hours ago to feed the calves.”

“They’ve already been took care of,” he said, rising from the chair to walk over to the stove.

“Oh, Buck, I’m so sorry you had to—”

“Don’t thank me,” he said as he reached for a skillet hanging from the pot rack above the butcher-block island. “Eli said he’d take care of ’em and that I was to let you sleep until you woke up.”

“I should probably go see if he needs help with something,” she said, starting to get her coat. But when she started into the mudroom, she remembered that Eli hadn’t taken the time to retrieve it when he’d brought her back to the house to warm up. “I don’t have a coat anymore.”

Bent over to get a carton of eggs from the refrigerator, Buck smiled over his shoulder at her. “One of the boys brought it and your clothes back to the house when they went to get the mare. I already got ’em washed and they’re dryin’ now.” Straightening, he asked, “How ’bout I fix you some scrambled eggs, a steak and some biscuits and gravy?”

“It sounds wonderful, but I hate for you to go to all that trouble.” She got a coffee mug from the cabinet above the coffeemaker and poured herself a cup. “I’ll just have coffee and toast.”

“Can’t gain your strength back eatin’ like a bird,” Buck said, his tone disapproving. “Just tell me one thing. If I fix it, will you eat it?” The eggs were already sizzling in the pan.

“Yes, but—”

He pointed to the table. “Sit.”

Realizing it was futile to argue with him, Tori sat in her chair at the table. “As soon as my coat is dry, I’ll try to find Eli and find out what he wants me to do today.”

“He said you weren’t to leave the house,” Buck answered, opening the oven door to pull a tray of biscuits out that he’d tossed in to warm up. He turned to face her. “Normally, I’d call him on bein’ high-handed, but in this case, he’s right. You don’t have any business bein’ out in the cold just yet.”

“I’m fine,” she said, frowning.

He nodded as he brought her plate over to set it in front of her. “And we want to make sure you stay that way.”

Sighing, she wondered what she would do for the rest of the day as she ate the delicious breakfast Buck had made for her. Since her arrival, she’d spent almost every waking minute taking care of animals or helping Eli with one chore or another. It was amazing how quickly she had become accustomed to the physical activity.

When she finished her meal, she reached for the catalog Buck had been looking at earlier. “Do you mind if I look at the seed catalog?” she asked.

“Go right ahead.” Buck smiled as he brought his cup of coffee over and sat down at the table with her. “I got it in the mail a while back and decided to start lookin’ to see what we might plant in the garden come spring.”

She hated to remind him that she might not be around then, but she supposed it wouldn’t hurt to start making plans just in case she was still living on the Rusty Spur. And even if she wasn’t, Buck might want to go ahead with the project.

As she and Buck discussed the size of the garden and how much they should plant of each type of vegetable, Eli came in from outside. Hanging up his coat, he walked over to get a cup of coffee before joining them at the table. “Did you sleep well?”

“I slept fine, but you should have woken me to feed the girls.” She smiled as she thought of the two red-and-white bucket babies. “How were Daisy and Buttercup this morning? Did you scratch Daisy’s back? She loves that. And Buttercup likes for me to rub her forehead.” When she noticed the two men exchanging a look, she paused for a moment. Buck wore a smug expression, while Eli was glaring at his father. “Is there something wrong with me bonding with the animals I’m taking care of?”

“Not at all, honey,” Eli said, reaching over to take her hand in his. “I think it’s nice that you care about them.”

“Me, too,” Buck added, his eyes looking suspiciously misty.

Checking his watch, Eli got up to refill his coffee cup. “As much as I hate to do it, I have to work on the ranch books today.”

“Is there anything I can do to help?” she asked. Doing boring paperwork would be better than having nothing to do at all for the rest of the day.

“You can keep me company if you’d like.” Eli’s smile made her feel as if the temperature in the room went up several degrees.

“Buck, if you’ll let me know when it’s time, I’ll help you make lunch,” she said, rising from the chair to follow Eli.

“You’ve got yourself a deal,” Buck called after her.

When she entered Eli’s office, she looked around at the masculine room. A lot could be learned about a person from the way they decorated their office. The furniture was the typically heavy leather and wood that men seemed to prefer and the mantel over the fireplace was decorated with pictures and sports trophies.

“I see you played football in high school,” she commented.

“Yup. That’s the reason I went to UCLA instead of the University of Wyoming,” he said, closing the door behind them. “They gave me a full-ride scholarship to play for them.”

“You must have been very good.”

He shrugged. “I could hold my own.”

Walking over to the fireplace, she took a closer look at the picture hanging above the mantel. It was a large photograph of a much-younger Buck and a woman holding a small boy.

“That’s Buck and my mom with me on my fifth birthday,” Eli said, coming to stand behind her. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her back against his chest. “She was killed in a car accident on the way to Eagle Fork two weeks later.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss, but I’m glad you got to know her,” Tori said, wishing she could have known her mother. “Mine passed away when I was born and I have no memories of her at all.”

His arms tightened around her in a comforting manner. “What about your dad?” he asked. “How long has it been since his death?”

She had told Eli that both of her parents were dead the first time he’d called to interview her. “My father died of a massive heart attack several months ago. He was under a lot of pressure and I guess it was too much for him.”

She felt guilty for not telling Eli who her father was and why he had been under so much stress, but she wasn’t sure she was ready for his reaction. What if he treated her like everyone else had when the story about her father was made public? People she had known all her life had suddenly looked at her with suspicion and intense loathing because her father had embezzled all or a sizable amount of their fortunes. The few who didn’t looked at her with sympathy in their eyes. She wasn’t sure which was worse—their hatred or their pity.

“I’m sorry, Tori,” Eli said gently. “I’m sure you miss him a lot.”

Turning in his arms, she stared up at him a moment before she shook her head. “I would love to be able to say that I do, but we were never close. He couldn’t forgive me for causing my mother’s death when I was born and the older I got, the more he seemed to despise me.” She sighed heavily. “I’m told that I look just like her and I don’t think he could come to terms with that.”

Eli hugged her close as his hands moved over her back in a soothing manner. “I wish it could have been different for you, honey.”

“Me, too,” she said, wrapping her arms around his waist. “I wish my father and I could have had a relationship like you and Buck have. I know he drives you up the wall sometimes, but you love each other and there’s nothing you wouldn’t do for him or him for you. Treasure every moment of that.”

When Eli leaned back to stare at her, the look in his dark brown gaze stole her breath. “Thanks for reminding me of how lucky I am, Tori. Yes, Buck can be hell to live with and I’d like nothing more than to throttle him at least a couple of times a day, but I’ve never spent a single minute of my thirty-four years doubting how much he cares for me.”

Lowering his mouth to hers, Eli’s firm lips moved over hers with such tenderness it brought tears to her eyes. The kiss was brief and more of an expression of understanding than passion, but it gave her hope that if they decided to make their marriage a real one, he might understand why she felt she had no choice but to keep her father’s scandal concealed.

When he raised his head, he smiled. “How are your computer skills?”

“I can hold my own,” she said, grinning as she returned his easy expression. “Why?”

Explaining that the breeding stock had all been tagged with a number, he added, “I have a new program designed to simplify my breeding records and give me a detailed analysis on each animal in a particular herd.”

“In other words, you’re looking for someone to input all of the data so you won’t have to,” she said, smiling.

His wide grin was unrepentant. “Yup.”

“And what will you be doing while I’m slaving away with the data entry?” she asked.

He kissed the tip of her nose. “I’ll be going over financial records and deciding whether or not to thin the herds or expand them, according to the latest market and futures reports.”

“Running a ranch this size is like running a business,” she said thoughtfully.

Having dealt with agricultural futures in her father’s investment firm, she could have offered to help analyze the information. But she had left that life behind and she had no intention of ever doing that type of work again. She had only gone into financial planning as a way to get closer to her father. She’d mistakenly thought that if he saw she wanted to follow in his footsteps it might somehow redeem her in his eyes. Unfortunately, not even that made a difference in their relationship.

Eli led her over to his desk and booted up the breeding-record program for her. “I have everything you’ll need right here,” he said, handing her a stack of papers with columns of numbers and dates. After he explained which set of numbers identified the cows, the bulls they were bred to and the number of calves produced, he added, “I really appreciate this, Tori. It’s going to save me a ton of time.”

“I’m happy to do it,” she said, seating herself in his desk chair.

While Eli sat in one of the big armchairs across the desk from her, going over the latest reports on cattle prices and the market projections, Tori entered the information into the computer. As she worked, she couldn’t help but wonder if it would be like this if they decided to continue their marriage. It was comforting to think that if they did, they might work together to improve the ranch for theirs and the future generations of Laughlins.

“I don’t know about you, but I could use a break,” Eli said, stretching his arms. “What do you say we go see if Buck has lunch ready?”

“It’s that time already?” Glancing at the clock, she couldn’t believe they had been working for well over two hours.

He nodded as he placed the reports on the desk and got up to walk around behind the chair where she sat. His strong hands gently massaging her shoulders and neck felt like heaven.

“If you keep that up, I just might sleep through lunch,” she said, closing her eyes. “Did anyone ever tell you that you have magic hands?”

His deep chuckle close to her ear seemed to vibrate all the way to her soul. “No, but if you think this feels good just wait until I—”

“If you two are ready, I got lunch on the table,” Buck called from the other side of the closed office door.

“Be right there,” Eli answered. Turning the chair away from the desk, he pulled her to her feet and into his arms. “Remind me later to tell you what else my hands are good at doing.”

A mixture of awareness and anticipation streaked up her spine at the thought of his hands touching every inch of her body. They were getting closer to making their union real and she knew before that happened, she needed to tell him about herself and the reasons she answered his online ad.

But as they walked down the hall together, Tori wasn’t sure how to approach the subject. What was she supposed to say—“Oh, by the way, I’m the daughter of the man who single-handedly created one of the biggest financial disasters since the Great Depression”? Or, “I’m responsible for turning my father in to the authorities when I discovered his nefarious business dealings”?

* * *

“I hope you’ve got big appetites,” Buck said, grinning from ear to ear when they entered the kitchen.

“I don’t know about Tori, but I do,” Eli said, holding Tori’s chair for her.

“My goodness, why didn’t you come and get me to help you with all this?” she asked, clearly surprised at the amount of food on the table.

“It really wasn’t all that much work,” Buck said, shaking his head. “But I figured since I won’t be around to fix supper tonight, I’d make a big lunch.”

“Oh, that’s right.” Tori smiled at his father as she passed Eli a bowl of mashed potatoes. “I remember you saying you were planning on playing poker this evening.”

Buck nodded. “Every Saturday night for the past five years.”

Eli watched his father. He knew exactly what the old guy was up to. Buck knew the terms of the prenuptial agreement and he was hoping that by giving them time alone, they would make the decision to waive the get-acquainted period, consummate the marriage and stay together.

As he listened to Tori and his father chat about the garden they were planning and where she should plant a few flowers, Eli thought about his wife and their unconventional union. He was having a hell of a time keeping his hands to himself and they were getting closer to doing exactly what Buck wanted. But Eli wasn’t entirely sure it would be wise to make that kind of commitment just yet.

He hadn’t heard anything from Sean Hartwell about the investigation. He had, however, reached the conclusion that he could overlook her misrepresenting her knowledge of farming and ranch work, as long as she had been truthful with him about everything else. Unfortunately, he wasn’t sure how much longer he was going to be able to control his hormones when every last one of them demanded that he answer their call and make love to his wife.

“Eli, do you mind?” Tori asked, drawing him out of his disturbing introspection.

“What was that?” he asked.

“If I’m here in the spring, Buck offered to make flower boxes for the front porch so that I can plant flowers in them, and I wondered if that was something you would object to,” she said, smiling.

He shook his head. “No, I don’t have a problem with that at all.”

As they continued to make plans, Eli decided he was going to have to talk to Buck and tell him that it might be a good idea to put any more projects on hold until a decision was made about Tori remaining on the ranch. There was no sense in looking forward to doing things that might not happen.

When the phone rang, he got up from the table. “I’ll take that in my office.”

Without waiting for Tori or Buck to respond, Eli walked down the hall to his office. Hopefully it was Sean reporting that other than her claim to have ranching experience, everything Tori had told him about herself was completely true.

Then he could give serious thought to taking their marriage to the next level and making love to his wife.